Morice Blackwell

The latest on Notre Dame's 2021 offers on the defensive side of the ball.

Offensive line and cornerback may be the two biggest positions of need in 2021 recruiting, but the Rover position isn't far behind

The big OL weekend is coming up. I wanted to get a feel for how ND might approach this. What I gathered is this.I'm told ND would take any of them who would want to commit, and they'd have a hard time saying no if all five wanted to commit. They really like all of them that much. On David Abiara, I'm told he's definitely coming back. I know they're trying to get him for that big weekend, but he may not make it in until April. Regardless, he's very interested and ND would love to have him. Very, very high on their list.On Jason Onye, he's another that is visiting, and ND feels they have a really good shot at him. He's kind of an Ade Ogundeji type in that he's really raw, but has some great attributes. He doesn't need to be great right away, and they feel he has a lot of potential. The visit will be very important, but I'm told he's very much a ND kid. DJ Harvey is visiting with that big group for 7-on-7, and ND recently offered him. They don't know a ton about him. Is he 5-10 or shorter? I think that's the big question for him. Jaylin Smith is a guy who has a shot to get offered and will be visiting soon. Again, it likely depends on how he looks physically and his height.At RB, it will be interesting. Seems Ohio State and ND are after the same 3 guys.But, kind of in reverse order because of who each side feels they have a good shot at. For instance, Ohio State probably has the best shot at TreVeyon Henderson. ND is working really hard to get him on campus again, but nothing yet. They're really trying to get him to visit this spring. Ohio State seems to be out front.OSU likes Will Shipley, but haven't had a lot of traction with him.Both ND and Ohio State are battling hard for Donovan Edwards. No idea where this is headed yet, but ND very much in the race. Michigan will be the other team in this, but those three seem to be the running backs, along with Corey Kiner, who ND host on a visit this next month. I asked about two key WRs. Jayden Thomas and Troy Stellato.I'm told Jayden Thomas likely won't visit until the summer because he's heavily involved in baseball, but ND fans shouldn't be worried about that. He likes ND a lot.I'm also told ND is trying to nail down a day for Troy Stellato. A visit is much in the works. Just not nailed down just yet. They're trying to work out a date, but Stellato does plan to visit in the next two months and probably March. We do know Aaron Armitage is visiting soon as well. I'm told ND will likely take him if he wants to commit. I asked about Linebacker as well, and it's still a bit up in the air. I do know for a fact that TX native Morice Blackwell likes ND a lot, and ND is trying really hard to get him up very soon. His parents seem very keen and interested, and they're working on that. He's not rated as high in rankings as some, but ND has him ranked very high on their rankings. I do as well. Very good player.That's it for now. Mike